Event: Coast to Coast Christmas Preview

Did you know Coast to Coast have only twelve restaurants in the UK? Have you ever heard of Coast to Coast? No. Neither did I until A few days before their Christmas Blogger Event. I saw them tweet for bloggers and was so intrigued I signed myself up. This is a gorgeous restaurant. They are planning to build another ten in the UK at the moment which is also exciting. Luckily for me they have one in Sheffield even though I hadn’t the foggiest where the restaurant actually was.

I met Emma at the train station and we hopped on the tram to Valley Centertainment, realising we were 45 minutes early we were greeted and seated and then served with a cocktail of our choice. I went for sex on the beach because it’s one of my favourite cocktails. As we had the wait of other bloggers turning up me and Emma chatted away, I met emma at a blogging event we both attending back in August and since then I would count her as a friend more than a acquaintance.. I text her pretty much every day whether it’s to do with our blogging event which we are hosting or not.

As the other bloggers turned up we were served a gorgeous Warm Apple Cider. My first impression? It tasted like apple pie… I loved it. It has a cinnamon stick in the glass which i’m sure helped with the apple pie taste. It was the first time that I had tasted warm cider and I would definitely try it again.

As all the bloggers had turned up we were directed to the bar where we met mixologist Andy. He told us a little about the christmas Menu and what to expect. First cocktail up was the Mimosa, this is a twist on the classic Bucks Fizz, made with fresh orange juice and Grand Marnier lengthened with bubbling Prosecco. Served in a chilled flute for a refreshing taste, this is perfect for any time of the day. I was the lucky girl that got to make this cocktail. Which after I had seen the other cocktails I was happy I got chose for this one. So I was stood behind the bar and I got the shakes… the shakes while I was holding glass bottles and a knife… this made me more nervous. Andy showed me how to cut a big of orange peel and make into a fancy thing for on top of the glass… what are they called?

Next up we learnt how to make egg-nog. I had no idea what this was and I had never tried it before either. It’s an authentic American Christmas Classic. It’s made with raisin infused rum, mixed with milk, double cream, egg whites and gingerbread syrup. When I saw egg I was immediately put off but it actually tastes really nice even though it is very thick and creamy.

Last up we learnt how to make a Chocolate Orange Martini, It’s made from Eristoff Vodka, White Chocolate Liqueur and Cointreau shaken with chocolate bitter and chocolate syrup. This was light and tasted of chocolate orange. I don’t think I could have drank a full glass of this though.

We were then directed to be seated for our five course taster meal. We were served with two starters, two mains and a desert.

Our first two courses come out and it was beautifully presented. We were served with Mushroom Risotto and Goats Cheese Bruschetta Bites.. This was gorgeous. The risotto was perfectly cooked in my opinion. I had never tried goats cheese before but soon came to realise it tasted gorgeous. We couldn’t have been served with a more perfect starter.

We were then presented with our first of two main courses. Which were the Maple Bacon Burger! Oh My Gosh this looked amazing! My first bite was strange the bun was sweet but it did taste gorgeous. Then I realised it was a brioche bun and there was also maple syrup on the bacon. This made my mouth water bite after bite, it was served with fries and colsaw. It was so tasty!

The second main course we served was a traditional christmas dinner. Roast turkey dinner… my fave! (YUM). This was served with all the trimmings! From roast potatoes to pigs in blankets… Was gorgeous in taste, the turkey was cooked perfectly. It wasn’t dry which was a great thing. If you live in sheffield and you’ve never been to Coast to Coast at Valley Centertainment I suggest you go over the christmas period.

Finally our last course. Boy was I excited about this course… Cookie Cheesecake! This was a cookie cheesecake made with real oreo cookies served with oreo ice cream and chantilly cream. This was literally like heaven in a cheesecake! I have never tasted something so nice other than my boyfriend’s dad’s homemade cheesecake… When thats made I’m first in line for a slice! I am so glad I have the pleasure of eating his cheesecake! Back to the oreo cheesecake anyway. This definitely was one of the best courses.

After our massive five course meal I was stuffed and we were directed back to the bar for one last cocktail lesson. We learnt how to make a snowman. This is a blend of Erinstoff Vodka, white chocolate liqueur, double cream and vanilla syrup. This had squirty cream on the top to make the head, two matchmakers as arms, two mini oreo cookies as eyes and a carrot as the nose. Honestly looked too cute to drink.

That was our evening with Coast to Coast done. It was a thrilling evening, now for myself, Emma and Dorcas we had a mad rush for the train station as Emma had to get her train home to nottingham at 22.01. We arrived at the station at 21.57, we literally ran from the taxi rank! Me being in 6″ high wedges and Emma being in heels too this was almost like mission impossible. We made it to platform with one minute to spare and quick hug goodbye and I was heading back to the front of the station.